40 indicted in New York drug trafficking operations

By the Associated Press

Wednesday, January 29, 2014

BUFFALO — Forty people have been indicted as part of a pair of drug trafficking rings that authorities say operated in western New York.

Attorney General Eric Schneiderman and state police Superintendent Joseph D’Amico announced the developments in Buffalo Tuesday, saying investigators seized more than $100,000 in cocaine, $60,000 cash and prescription pills.

Investigators also uncovered frequent cockfights on the Tuscarora Indian Reservation in Niagara County and charged the alleged organizer.

The 18-month investigations were led by the Attorney General’s Organized Crime Task Force and led to two indictments that were unsealed in Erie County Tuesday.

Authorities say in one operation, suspects packed cocaine into the soles and heels of shoes to transport it from Fort Lauderdale, Fla., to Niagara Falls.